South Koreans praise search efforts for crash, while Hun Sen is blasting it, are the Koreans sarcastic?

Cheab Mony, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
06/07/2007

A day after Prime Minister Hun Sen assailed the leaders of a search for a crashed tourist plane last week, a South Korean official Friday praised the effort.

Thirteen South Koreans were aboard the flight, which crashed in the coastal mountains in heavy rains last week, killing 22.

Park Sung Vam, president of the Cambodia-Korean Parliamentary Friendship Group, extended on behalf of his country "deep gratitude" to searchers, who took two and a half days to find the wreckage.

Hun Sen adviser Eang Sophalette said Friday the Koreans were praising the efforts of Hun Sen, who directed the search from the provincial capital of Kampot. A prolonged search meant survivors of the crash may have died of injuries, the adviser said.

Sam Rainsy Party lawmaker Son Chhay said the South Koreans may have been "sarcastic" in their remarks.

Cambodian prime minister blasts airline crash search leaders [-when he should blame himself for Cambodia's neglect]

Jul 4, 2007
DPA

Phnom Penh - Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen Wednesday blasted senior generals charged with searching for a passenger aircraft which went down killing all on board last week, saying they lacked even basic maps of the area and the lapse was unacceptable.

All 22 passengers and crew of the AN-24 died in last Monday's crash, including the Russian pilot, three Czechs, 13 South Korean tourists and the Cambodian passengers and crew. Two of the Korean victims were siblings, aged 5 and 1.

The wreckage of the plane was finally discovered in thick jungle last Wednesday and all bodies were recovered the same day.

Speaking at a conference on coping with national disasters, Hun Sen claimed that if searchers had followed the directions of senior leaders they may still be looking for the PMT Air flight, which went down in bad weather between the northern temple town of Siem Reap and the south-western beach resort of Sihanoukville.

'If you have no map in hand you cannot be generals any more. Please, get a map,' Hun Sen said in a speech broadcast on national media.

'You have stars but no maps,' he added, in a reference to the generals' insignia marking their high rank, and suggested they might as well sell their military stars by the kilo to local scrap metal dealers.

Details of the last minutes of the lives of the passengers and crew of the nearly 30-year-old Antanov flown by the small local charter company remain sketchy.

A black box-type flight recorder was recovered at the scene of the crash and South Korea has said it has sent aviation experts to assist in the investigation into the tragedy.